Is it strange…
That when I’m getting to know a person,
what I really I long to learn about them,
are things like…
“What have you come through—struggled through, wrestled through, walked victoriously into— in your life, that has shaped you, that is shaping you now?”
And,
“What are you honestly in the middle of facing, right here, right now?”
“What is the lesson you are in the middle of learning in your life right now?”
“What are you right in the middle of, right here, right now?”
…And yet, how often do we find ourselves attempting to “paint a picture of perfection” for others to see,
a “picture” that reveals no trace of weakness…
a “picture of perfection”—or really… a “mirage of perfection.”
How often do we want no “weaknesses” to be seen, “if there’s any way that we can manage to hide them?”
I think the most beautiful parts our stories
are the parts where our weaknesses have been made strong….
…where “the ruins” have been/ are being made beautiful. 💖
I love the way “vulnerability” can give us a sense of
“togetherness“
A “togetherness” that says,
“It’s okay that you’ve not ‘made it yet’ because none of us on the earth have ‘made it’ yet.”
“You’re not alone in what you face. You’re not alone in not being perfect…
“Don’t feel ashamed for being in the middle of an intense lesson right now—I’m in one right now too.”
“Don’t feel ashamed for not being perfect.”
…but isn’t it wonderful that He is “perfecting us”?
Isn’t it incredible that He already sees us as “finished” and “perfected” in Christ?”
How often do we strive to create and to guard an image of “perfection?”
How often do we find ourselves, attempting to put on this “mirage of perfection” for everyone to see?
Can I say to you, that I am going through this one—this lesson— right here, right now? 💖
The areas of weakness in your life?
The things you are struggling through right now?
What they really show is where you’re being made strong.
“Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” —2 Corinthians 12:8-10
These things that we face really show…
…that in Him, in His strength, you’re made to be an “Overcomer.”
Isn’t that beautiful?
Isn’t that freeing?
So…
“What’s your story?”
“What is God bringing you through— right now?”
“What have you come through in your life?”
“What have you wrestled through, to be where you are?”
“Where have you experienced God be strong in the midst of your weaknesses?”
“How has God used your life—both struggles and victories— to mold you and shape you?”
“…where is the beauty in your story?”
“Are you still in the place of waiting to see the beauty come from the ashes?”
“Where has God’s love infused and filled into the places of your heart that were once cracked and broken?”
“Where is He mending these places, even now?”
“What is He doing in you now… that is like a “work of art”—yet to be revealed?”
(Yes, I know that’s not really a question that can be answered, but can we ponder these things among one another in love, and with a joyful sense of awe and wonder? ✨)
We are “works of art”…being hand-created by the “Artist of the Universe”
…a beautiful work, that is yet to be seen. ✨
Let us remind ourselves, that His “perfecting” work is yet to be finished and revealed.
“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.“—Philippians 1:6
It’s okay, to be “unfinished”…
It’s okay, to be “in-process”…
It’s okay, to be “on a journey”…
We’ve not “made it yet.”
Why do we often feel the need to seem as though we have?
The amazing thing is…
Our Father in Heaven, already sees His finished work in us. ✨
And He already sees the beauty of the work of His hands. 💐
He’s making our lives into a glorious story. 📖
An “imperfect” story, that fits—somehow so perfectly
into His. 💖
And I’m learning
to rest in this. 🌷🍃
Thank You, Father. 💝
And just as Your love is a safe place for us, help us to learn how to be “safe places” for one another in this journey.
“After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.“—1 Peter 5:10
-Heather 🌺